"For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off.I will send my fear before thee, and will destroy all the people to whom thou shalt come, and I will make all thine enemies turn their backs unto thee. And I will send hornets before thee, which shall drive out the Hivite, the Canaanite, and the Hittite, from before thee. I will not drive them out from before thee in one year; lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased, and inherit the land.And I will set thy bounds from the Red sea even unto the sea of the Philistines, and from the desert unto the river: for I will deliver the inhabitants of the land into your hand; and thou shalt drive them out before thee.

Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images.Thou shalt make no covenant with them, nor with their gods. They shall not dwell in thy land, lest they make thee sin against me: for if thou serve their gods, it will surely be a snare unto thee.

And ye shall serve the LORD your God, and he shall bless thy bread, and thy water; and I will take sickness away from the midst of thee. There shall nothing cast their young, nor be barren, in thy land: the number of thy days I will fulfil."
- Exodus 23:23-23:33

We have taken the liberty of reordering the content of these last 10 verses of the formal covenant with Israel in order to better present them in 3 categories as per the paragraphs above.
1. The Conquest of the Land.
2. The Conditions pertaining to the Conquest.
3. The Blessings of adhering to the conditions.

The Conquest of the Land - it is abundantly clear from the text that it is the LORD himself who drives out our enemies. Count the times the words "I will" - appears in the first paragraph. He promised to fight their battles for them - they would not have to even confront their enemies. Fear and hornets (either literal or symbolic) would move ahead of Israel, and their enemies melt before them. No fighting was to be even necessary! The extent of the land promised is also noteworthy, extending from the Red Sea to the Arabian, and from the lowest bounds of Sinai to the river Euphrates in Iraq. Modern Israel is a sliver by comparison. It is also useful to note that He does not give His children more they can handle, but it is little by little - in digestible chunks and always with good reason - here it was to keep the land from lying fallow and becoming invaded with wild animals, which would then have to be driven out again.

This conquest was Conditional upon their keeping the terms of the covenant - in particular, the biggest term of all, enshrined in the First commandment (Thou shalt have no other gods before ME) - and repeated here for emphasis. We need to really understand that our God is what we put our trust in. Todays gods are money, power, fame, public acclaim, personal growth/accomplishment. They are indeed a snare to us - pursuing them to the exclusion of all else makes us sin against Him, and pierces us through with many sorrows. Seeking Him first and His righteousness should be our first priority - everything else will follow - in particular...

The Blessings. God's blessing will make bread and water more refreshing and nourishing than a feast of fat things and wines on the lees without that blessing.The continuance of their health: "I will take sickness away" - either prevent it or by removing it. Their land would not be visited with epidemical diseases, which are very dreadful, and sometimes have laid countries waste. The increase of their material wealth. Their cattle should not be barren, nor cast their young, which is mentioned as an instance of prosperity, Job_21:10. Their lives prolonged to old age: "The number of thy days I will fulfil" - they would not be cut off in the midst by untimely deaths.

This concludes the entire Text of the Covenant as presented to the Israelites at Sinai, as recorded in His Word, and as agreed to by Israel." And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that the LORD hath said will we do, and be obedient.And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the LORD hath made with you concerning all these words. " Exo 24:7-8.
This is the covenant that was immediately broken a few days later when Israel and Aaron joined in worshipping a golden calf. Put yourself in the Lords place, and think how you would react - its like a bride being unfaithful the day after the wedding. A son that disowns his father and throws him out of the house the day he comes into his inheritance.

There is a sobering lesson in the corrupting power of sin here. Even witnessing the glory of God, listening to His voice, and receiving His word did not prevent Israel from sinning. How much more dependent on Grace are we then, that do not have that benefit! But rather - how beautiful and God glorifying is His true Church, that has not seen yet believes, that clings to His promises and obeys His Word! Will He not be gracious to us? Will not His love cover and overspread us as the atmosphere surrounds our planet?

He stayed faithful to Israel as a nation - though a generation fell in the wilderness. He gave their enemies into their hand though they now had to fight them. He came to them as a human though they stoned and killed the prophets that were sent to them. He keeps and preserves a remnant even today for His Name's sake - and will to the end of days when 144,000 of them will serve Him a last time. He will do it, by His power, and for His Glory. He is so beautiful and gracious! - Let us learn to love Him for who He IS and not for what He can do for us - He knows what we need and what is best for us. The path to a godly character winds through the wilderness of suffering, doubt, and tribulation. It is difficult for us to understand this - but it is all part of the process of trusting Him even though He slays us (Job 13:15)

We have nothing to contribute to Him but receive all things from His hand. The least we can do, and all He asks of us is to be diligent to obey His Law as He intended - to love and serve Him by loving His image (man) - and He will receive us into His Glory as His Bride!

Hallelujah!